Self-handicapping (Part 1 of 5)

Self-handicapping is a cognitive strategy by which people avoid effort in the hopes of keeping potential failure from hurting self-esteem. It was first theorized by Edward E. Jones and Steven Berglas, according to whom self-handicaps are obstacles created, or claimed, by the individual in anticipation of failing performance. Self-handicapping can be seen as a method of preserving self-esteem but it can also be used for self-enhancement and to manage the impressions of others. This conservation or augmentation of self-esteem is due to changes in causal attributions or the attributions for success and failure that self-handicapping affords. There are two methods that people use to self-handicap: behavioral and claimed self-handicaps. People withdraw effort or create obstacles to successes so they can maintain public and private self-images of competence. Self-handicapping is a widespread behavior amongst humans that has been observed in a variety of cultures and geographic areas. For… Read by Blacktc. Recorded April 22, 2019; the article may have changed since. The article as it stood when recorded: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=893538145 Article today: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-handicapping Original recording: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:En_Self-handicapping_Section_1_Introduction.ogg License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This episode is a format-shifted (MP3) copy redistributed under the same license. This show is an independent community project, not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation.